A/N: For @rays-of-fire-and-ice !! So sorry this is late, but here's your gift!
(This is actually a side-blog so I can't submit it through this account as far as I know, I hope you don't mind this instead!)
I feel bad for not participating much in HitsuHinaWeek 2019; I found myself swept along the holidays and wound up with far less time than I thought I'd have ;n; But! I hope you enjoy this ray, and hope you all have a happy new year!!
Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach. Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo.
She took a breath before calling out to him. "Shiro!"
The young captain jumped in his seat at his desk, too engrossed in his work to have heard her come in. He looks up at her, slight annoyance written all over him, and sighs. "What is it, Hinamori?"
Momo looked away innocently, rocking back and forth on her heels with her hands - and what they were holding - hidden behind her back. "I've got a favor to ask-"
"If this is about that stupid calendar then you should forget it," he says with a flat tone.
She pouted and held the camera she was hiding up to her chest, her motives discovered. "Awww, come on Shiro!"
The Women's Association wants to make a new calendar focusing on one of the captains once again. With this being the ninth year since the war with the Quincy has ended, Toshiro was of course the perfect choice for next year's calendar. It didn't help that his face sold some of the most merchandise and funded the association's budget quite spectacularly.
"I've already done that nonsense before - without my knowledge, might I add," Toshiro says, eyebrow twitching at the memory. "I will not participate in such ridiculousness again, as I'm sure you know by now."
"He keeps catching me!" Rangiku yelled, downing yet another bottle of sake. "It's like he has a radar or somethin'!"
"You might not be that far off," Soi Fon muses. "Even I haven't been able to capture any candid shots, despite him being strangely easy to track recently."
"Maybe he's using his spiritual pressure to locate where we are?" Rukia proposed, finger on her chin.
"I don't care what it is!" Rangiku slammed her hands on the floor. "It's just annoying!"
She whips her head to her. "Momo!"
"Make him do it! Candid is out this time!"
She stopped herself from rolling her eyes at the memory. Yes, she did know full well about his unwillingness. But she was determined. She looked back at him, intent on convincing him. "Shiro, it isn't that bad! You'll just have to let us take some pictures of you!"
"Yes. While I'm unaware," he countered. "I'm sorry, but I don't find that idea appealing whatsoever."
She pouted even harder. He returned the gesture, even if she was sure he thought he was glaring. 'Think, Momo! How can you make him change his mind?'
Then something hit her. Something unexpected.
She smiled at the thought, which made Toshiro quirk an eyebrow. "How about this then? Instead of having the entire Women's Association harass you, it can mainly be just be us two, going to a bunch of places that fit the theme of the month? Other than some holidays that'll need some preparation to take photos for, it can be just you and me."
That gave him pause. His eyebrows shot to his hairline and he looked away, hopefully giving it thought. She quite liked the idea herself. It's been a long time since she and Toshiro went anywhere that was unrelated to work, and this gave them the perfect chance to change that..
(She was sorry to Nanao, but the Association was not, is not, and will never be work in her eyes.)
Toshiro seemed to think something along those lines too. She couldn't think of many other reasons he was thinking so hard on whether he would go along with it. "I have a lot of work to doâŚ" he offers lamely.
She giggled. "The Association will handle that! Come on!"
He sighed, and she knew she got him.
Toshiro looked adorable in an apron covered in chocolate.
They stood in the brightly lit kitchen, decorated well for a quick job; light pink wallpaper with a variety of gifts and treats littered about to give it a Valentine's Day feel. While big holidays like New Year's and Halloween were being set up by the rest of the Association members, they decided to go ahead and begin with the other months. It was them and Rangiku acting as photographer there now, starting still-big-but-easier-to-set-up Valentine's and White days. The March holiday will have the same idea, with different gifts and a light blue wallpaper to give the impression they gave more time to the look.
But for now she and Toshiro stood there, actually making chocolates due to her suggestion. She knew what she was doing, but poor Shiro obviously didn't, managing to get chocolate splattered on parts of his face and all over his apron. She laughed as he tried to use the electric mixer on too high a setting again and got some more chocolate on him, this time in his hair.
"Let me handle that Shiro," she finally offers, unable to hold back her smile. He huffs but agrees, glad to be away from the dreaded mixer. She takes it and lowers the power before mixing the batter, making far less of a mess than her partner. An idea struck her, and she smiled coyly. When she was done she took a spoon, scooped out some chocolate, and held it in front of Toshiro.
"Say 'ahhh' Shiro!" She says, waving the spoon in front of his mouth.
He threw a scowl at her. "No."
"Come on, we have to see if it tastes good!"
"Please. As if anything you make could taste bad."
Momo's eyes widened at the sudden compliment. Her face seemed to have made Toshiro realize what he said; a small blush spread across his face. "I meant that you've been baking a long time! You know what you're doing!" He says quickly.
Out of the corner of her eye she could see Rangiku barely contain a squeal.
Momo focused back at Toshiro. "Pleeease? If you're so confident in my baking then you know it'll taste good then! Have some!"
Toshiro looked away, blush still firm on his face. "I can eat some by myself."
She shook her head. "Mm mm mmm! This is a one time offer! It's either this or nothing!"
He snapped his head around to look at her, surprised. "What?!" He groaned out a complaint and stood there. After a moment he closed his eyes tightly and opened his mouth, accepting the offer wordlessly. Momo jumped a bit in joy and slowly put the spoonful of chocolate in his mouth-
They both turned to Rangiku, who sniffled at them. "Sorry! You two keep going!" She says innocently, waving the fingers not holding her camera at them to continue.
The rest of the set up was uneventful, the baking of the chocolate going off without a hitch. When it came time to take the actual photos she thought that would change; Toshiro seemed incapable of taking a shot without looking away from the camera.
Oddly enough that wasn't the case. At least, according to Rangiku.
"It's good to show a shy side! Everyone thinks you're so cold, but this can change that perception up quite nicely~"
Toshiro grumbled in protest of the idea but ultimately decided it was easier than any alternatives. This and White Day had similar poses then; one of a bashful Captain Hitsugaya receiving chocolates, and the other giving a small present.Â
Momo agreed with Rangiku; the shy look was quite nice.
They decided to do New Year's next.
Although Toshiro was the only one dressed in traditional robes to celebrate the would-be holiday, the Association thought it wasteful to go through all the trouble of setting up the festivities and not partaking in them. At least, that was the excuse they gave for mochi pounding and playing hanetsuki and drinking.Â
"We've taken the photo," Toshiro mutters, annoyed that he technically endorsed the women's partying. "I don't see why I'm still here."
"Sound like you just don't want me to beat you in hanetsuki," Momo teases, waving the paddle in the air with a false confidence.
Toshiro bristled, eyebrows pointed downwards at her accusation. "You're being childish," he tells her, though she could see his fingers tapping against his arm. He wants to prove her wrong; just a lil more pushing and she's got him.
"You're right, Shiro. It's really mature of you to admit that you'd lose." She moved the paddle in front of her face to hide her smile. "I've got a lot of catching up to do!"
"Where's another paddle at?!" He looks around angrily, kicking off his geta.
Once he found it the game was on. Both of them ran desperately to the shuttlecock, an unspoken rule against using shunpo agreed between them. It made things quite a bit harder for Toshiro with his restrictive clothes, but he made up for it in his determination to win.Â
In the end Toshiro's clothing was in fact his undoing. A trip stopped him from reaching the shuttlecock in time, and it bounced on the ground in the rhythm of his defeat. He grunted in exasperation as Momo cheered.
"Now you have to treat the winner to a meal!"
"Since I just made it up now! Come on, let's get you out of those clothes."
Toshiro held back another protest in his confusion. "We're leaving now?"
Momo nodded. "This is fun, but I want to go to the next photo spot right now!"
Toshiro tilted his head slightly. "Where's that?"
She smiled. "The world of the living."
Wow, gigai really were uncomfortable.
She'd forgotten just how off they felt to be in, like clothes that were simultaneously too tight and too loose. She found herself rolling her shoulders again to try and rid of the tension- or try to fit in it more. It didn't work. She sighed.
"Regretting it yet?" She looked to her side and saw Toshiro stare back at her out of the corner of his eyes.
She shook her head, taking a bite of the watermelon he had bought for her. "How can I regret being in the world of the living with you Shiro?"
He huffed and looked away at her words. "Can you think about your words for a second, HinamoriâŚ"
She giggled at him. He was being silly, really; the world of the living was beautiful this time of year. The parks of Karakura Town were a burst of warmth. Reds, yellows, and oranges filled the air around them as autumn settled down within the trees' roots. Coupled with the sunset illuminating the sky the world was like a blanket, embracing those dwelling on it with a warmth that beat the chill in the winds.
Momo so rarely got assigned to the world of the living. She was glad to be able to come during such a gorgeous time, with her lifelong friend.
"Well, at least you look happyâŚ"
Said friend's words brought her out of her musings. She looked down at him, which made him look away again. Not before she noticed the redness of his cheeks at being caught staring.
It was only the widening of her smile that made her realize its existence at all. No, she could never regret coming here, even in the strange gigai.
They soon found a clearing where the leaves were blowing and piling around the edges, a perfect spot for a picture. They took it without issue, and decided to stay there and justâŚ
Talk about how their days have been lately. About new art projects and about new ideas for sculptures. Gushing and ranting about recent books they've read, or the few movies they've seen. Complaining about lazy subordinates and captains. Momo found herself relaxing as the minutes quickly turned to hours, and she saw Toshiro do the same, the tension of his shoulders leaving as he bemoaned Rangiku's persistent habit of ditching her work.Â
When was the last time they spent time together like this? When they could see past their history and talk as though they had no worries? When they could just⌠be?
"We should come here more often," she says suddenly.
Toshiro stops mid-sentence. "What?"
Momo looked at him, and he looked back.Â
"I said, we should come here more often. It's been so long since we just hung out. I miss those days a lot, you knowâŚ"
His eyes widened at her words, but his gaze remained on her. It softened after a moment of silence. "Yeah. I miss them too."
"We made pretty good progress today with the photos. I think we'll be done the day after tomorrow, at the latest. Do you think, after that, we can still�"
He smiled, a small but powerful thing. "Of course. I'd like that too."
She giggled... and then noticed the sky.
"Oh no! It's gotten so late! We have to get back, Shiro!" She took his hand and started running back to where Inoue's apartment was.
"H-Hey! Let go of me!" He shouts, but he doesn't try to break free.Â
"Shiro, it's the last one-"
"But you did all the other ones!"
"Pleeease? It's only for a few minutes!"
"Not if it's hanging on the walls of hundreds of shinigami all year long!"
She pouted, stomping her foot on the cave floor. She knew this was going to be the hardest one to convince him to do. Rangiku warned her that was going to be the case. But they were so close to being done! This was the last photo that needed to be taken, the one for December. It would be special, however; instead of the usual Christmas theme, they wanted to go with-
"I'm not using Bankai to take a stupid picture!"
"Oh, but you'll use it when Rangiku slacks off!"
"T-That's different! I was just making her do the work she was supposed to be doing, what good is this going to do?!"
"You'll be helping the Women's Association a lot!"
"What do you people even do there?!"
He crossed his arms. "Why can't we do some Christmas thing or whatever? Isn't that par for the course?"
She hid her face behind her camera. "A lot of us still haven't seen what your Bankai does after you mastered it⌠A lot of people wanna know what it looks likeâŚ" She looked away from him, forcing the next words out. "...People like meâŚ"
She could feel the blush rush up her cheeks at the confession. After Rangiku went off about the drastic change Toshiro goes through in his improved Bankai it's been the talk of the Women's Association for years. To this day, Rangiku, Captain Kuchiki, and Captain Zaraki were the only ones to know what it looks like.
That wasn't fair⌠She wanted to see it tooâŚ
Silence sat in the air, the drafts of the cave echoing off the walls.
Momo didn't dare look at her friend. She just nodded. "I've never seen it before⌠I can't help but be curiousâŚ"
Another pause. Then she heard a sigh.
"Get out for a minute. I'll call you when I'm ready."
She snapped her eyes back onto him, a smile stretching wide across her face. He jumped at the sudden eye contact and looked away. "Go, before I change my mind!"
She nods before using shunpo to exit the cave. She stood near the mouth, bouncing on her feet in anticipation. She was finally going to see it! And she'll be the first in the Association to see it- after Rangiku, but still!
A sudden gust of cold wind interrupted her thoughts. She shielded her face as best she could and waited for it to pass, releasing some of her spiritual pressure to warm herself up. Once it ended she hears a voice, familiar but strangely deeper.
She swallowed and went back inside ⌠and her jaw hung open.Â
There in the cave was not her shorter childhood friend, but a fully grown man, his clothes barely fitting and tinted at the edges with frost and ice. Familiar features, like the wings and collar of ice, felt foreign with the aged body.Â
But what got her the most was the familiar pose he was in.
He sat on a chair of ice, one elbow hosting a hand resting on a hand leaning on a leg propped up on the other. She recognized the pose as one he did far in the past, before Aizen had ever betrayed the Soul Society.Â
Even the blush was the same.
Cocky as the photo had been it had taken much to be rid of the redness spreading across his cheeks. She watched now as he took deep breaths, just as before. Slowly the blush faded, leaving behind a, if not cocky, then not overtly embarrassed man.
He smirked, but his next words betrayed his want for this to be over.
"Hurry up and take the picture."
She did, wordlessly, too shocked to say anything. This was⌠certainly⌠happeningâŚ
Soon enough he released his Bankai, reverting back to his younger form with clothes only slightly stretched.Â
"So we're done with the photos, yes?"
"I'm not doing that again. Ever."
He walks past her to the exit. She follows behind him.
...She wonders if she can get him to change his mind.
Well, it was done. The photos have been given away to be copied and edited, and the decorations have been nearly completely taken down some days later. All that was left to do was wait for months to pass for next year to be here. Momo sighed into her paperwork; that was exhausting. No wonder Toshiro was so reluctant to do it.
She jumped at the sudden shout at the door. Rangiku came bounding in, racing to her desk with a speed to be envied.
"Oh Momo, I knew you had the magic touch! The photos were amazing! And gods, that last one is just," she put her index finger and thumb together and kissed them flamboyantly, "perfect. You're a miracle worker!"
Momo blushed at the memory. "Don't mention it, it was nothingâŚ"
"Suuure~" Rangiku teased, throwing a wink at the younger lieutenant. Her face then turned more serious, a warm smile on her face. "Did you two have fun?"
The question surprised her, and made her think back. Making chocolates, playing games, the hours spent in each other's company at the park clearingâŚ
She returned the smile. "Yeah⌠we did."
Rangiku giggled. "That's good. The Captain really oughta relax more. I'm glad you two had a nice time. And," she dug in her⌠vault, and pulled out a photo, "this is thank you for convincing him to go along with us. See ya later Momo!"Â
With that she left, leaving Momo alone in the office. She turned the photo given to her in her hands, curious as to what it could be.
It was her and Toshiro, dressed in aprons- his significantly dirtier than hers. His face was scrunched up adorably, while hers had a big smile as she fed him chocolate batter. Momo laughed; she had never even noticed that Rangiku had taken a photo of the two of them. How sneaky.
She smiled down at the picture, a warm feeling spreading across her chest. She was glad Rangiku did; it felt nice to have something to remember such a nice day with.
She put it in an empty drawer in her desk. She'll have to have it framed soon.
